


Stream

by InvincibleRodent



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Bathing/Washing, Developing Relationship, F/F, First Kiss, First Meetings, Gift Fic, Pre-Dragon Age: Inquisition, Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-17
Updated: 2016-05-17
Packaged: 2018-06-09 01:04:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,969
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6882802
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InvincibleRodent/pseuds/InvincibleRodent
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A gift fic to a friend from Femslash February and OC Kiss Week, written in response to a tumblr prompt, "If you wanted to see me naked, all you had to do is ask.". Posted here for purely self-indulgent reasons, and because there is not nearly enough OC/OC girl-love going around.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Stream

**Author's Note:**

> Adela Cadash belongs to me, and Nyla Lavellan belongs to my dear friend, [Pavelyans on tumblr](http://pavelyans.tumblr.com/) , please do give her a visit! :)

Bards often liken the month of Drakonis to an old lover beckoning you back into her embrace, urging to delay the morning- rather a lingering, gentle winter, than a harbinger of spring.

Personally, Nyla thought that was a load of bronto shit. Especially as she watched the clouds of her breath drift towards the bleak, smoke-colored sky.

As if to spite the fresh buds of green on the branches before her, the harsh winds nipped at the tips of her exposed ears, igniting them with frost. While her form was mostly concealed by the twisted mess of bare branches and the steam rising from the spring below, she still felt somewhat exposed, indecent- an unwelcome, hidden spectator of the scene unfolding below her.

Her fingers, long and elegant but left woefully bare by her leather gloves, were reddened in the cold as she gripped the branch on which she was seated- her nails bit shallowly into the bark, littering her nailbeds with specks of dirt and grime.

She wasn’t supposed to be here. That much was given, and she was well aware- she wasn’t even sure what compelled her legs to carry her to this secluded little oasis. Most of the time, she kept away from areas such as this one, areas likely to attract travelers and attention- towns, harbors especially, hot springs… The sound of quiet footsteps on the stale duff signaling a presence other than her own oft pushed her to give the noise a berth as wide as possible, to avoid a possible threat.

And yet, this time, like a marionette pulled by a string, she found herself drawn to these steps, their soft crunch on the dry leaves- concealed, but bold. Intriguing. But now that her curiosity had been satisfied, she cursed the curiosity that landed her among the branches- there was no way to move now, not without causing a racket and alerting the other woman to her presence.

So she sat still, as a deer in a hunter’s crosshairs- her body coiled, ready to charge, but in the same breath, ready to flee. She watched the cloaked stranger stroll up to the stream and crouch down to dip a naked hand, tinted bright pink with a chill, into the warm water.

A dwarf. Judging by the weightlessness of her steps, she was no mere merchant, and not a bandit; the quiver and bow strapped to her back made her appear as dangerous as a sole person wandering the woods without a care must be. Anyone who survived the pockets of war and bandits littering the countryside had to have earned it- Nyla sure did, by the skin of her teeth at times- despite the pursuers on her tail, it was safe to assume her general hardships weren’t far out of the ordinary.

A smuggler perhaps, Nyla guessed- separated from her peers, or a renegade member of the local Carta. Either way, whatever the dwarf was, the looseness of her limbs and confidence in her step urged Nyla to be cautious.

As the the traveler rose, the hood fell back onto her shoulders, and exposed hair as red as Nyla’s own- the color of dried rashvine leaves, and the elf’s eyes narrowed.

First the bow, and then the quiver fell away from the stocky frame, leaving the dwarf mostly, if not completely defenseless- which, if the happy jingling of her pack was any indication, was not a smart move on her part.

Layer after layer, the cured leather armor was painstakingly stripped from her body, exposing large swaths of the dark skin of her arms to the chilled air. Nyla sat, still as stone, her gaze fixed on the goosebumps that immediately rose on the soft, but strong arms. She found herself unconsciously digging her teeth into the sides of her tongue as the light chestplate fell from the dwarf’s body, revealing the finely made, but worn, rumpled garment underneath, and the dwarf’s fingers skirted around the edge of her undershirt before she heaved the fabric over her head, leaving her largely bare and shivering.

Then finally, unceremoniously, the high boots and leather breeches fell away as well, and clad only in leggings and a breast band, the dwarf waded deep into the warm water, only taking a couple steps until it lapped at the underside of her breasts. Nyla startled somewhat when she suddenly spoke.

“You know, if you wanted to see me naked, all you had to do is ask.” the dwarf said, not even looking back at the other woman. “You can come down if you want, I don’t bite, and I can’t imagine that perch is comfortable.”

She had a deep, smoky voice, as of she had smoked two packs of cigarettes a day for a decent handful of years, but her tone held no malice- amusement, maybe, but no hostility. Quickly regaining her footing, Nyla let out a long breath through her nose, and heaved herself ably onto her feet on the branch, precarious from the outside, but secure. “Don’t flatter yourself, dwarf.” she retorted, and landed on the ground with a soft, barely noticeable thud, and she trailed her eyes along the scattered pieces of hide armor and clothing on the leaves. “Mighty careless of you to shed armor like that, especially if you know you’re not alone.” she said, nonchalant, and pinched the lightweight, but warm, discarded overcoat between her fingers, bending gracefully at the waist.

The dwarf shot a glance back over her shoulder. “I’ve been on the road for weeks” she said with a shrug, a smile hiding in her tone, “and I assumed a woman virtuous enough not to shoot and rob me the second I entered her sights was probably not looking out to kill me. Also, you’ve had pink in your cheeks since I started undressing.”

Nyla’s lips twitched into a small, tentative smile. “Blame the frostbite for that one.” With caution, she strolled closer to the stream, and planted herself on a nearby rock, well within the dwarf’s field of vision- her face quickly fell into a guarded, but pensive expression. “So you thought a stranger enraptured enough to spare your life. Confident.” she said, and the stranger laughed.

Nyla noted with a spark of delight that the dwarf’s laugh was as pleasant as her voice- somewhat scratchy, but warm, cocky even; more of a bark than a laugh.

“True enough.” the dwarf said, resigned. Seemingly declaring the conversation to be over, she conjured a small, shapeless piece of soap from somewhere within her clothing, and lather soon frothed up between her hands. Peeking back again, she arched a thick, rashvine-red eyebrow at the other woman. “So, are you going to leave, or join in?” she asked, her smile revealing a gap between her front teeth. “Or, you can just sit there and watch for another twenty minutes, while I enjoy my bath. Your call.”

“I’d prefer to remain clothed, thank you.” Nyla grimaced. Trust a dwarf as far as you can throw them, she had heard on the road, and while she had heard the same of her own people -whoever her people were, she supposed-, it was still advice she had intended to take- but even so, despite all her caution and weariness, letting an unarmed woman fend for herself, it didn’t feel right. “And armed.” she strung onto the end after a pause a heartbeat too long.

“Suit yourself.” The dwarf rubbed the suds along her forearms, her hands dipping under the surface of the water, awkwardly pawing, scrubbing at her calves as casually as one would by their lonesome, hardly even looking at her temporary companion. “You’ve a name, I suppose.” she asked, although her tone was hardly questioning. “Wouldn’t want to keep calling you ‘elf’, if we are to keep each other company for any stretch of time.”

“Asking for one’s name without telling your own is a sign of a lack of manners.” Nyla quipped back. The dwarf barely gave a small shrug.

“An impasse, then.” she said simply, declaring the barely-there conversation over once again.

Silence fell over the grove, and for long minutes, only the soft splashing of the dwarf’s meticulous washing and the rattling of the branches overhead could be heard. Nyla caught herself almost spacing out, just watching the waterlogged tresses of hair draw patterns on the dwarf’s upper back and round shoulders- she startled slightly when, with a loud splash, the dwarf dipped under the water completely to rid herself of the dirty, off-white suds clinging to her. Nyla watched as she padded out of the water, steam rising from her skin- goosebumps soon littered her arms and chest in the cool air. What wet fabric covered her still clung wet to her form, and drew shivers, tremors from the dwarf that shook her shoulders. She was barely a few inches taller standing than Nyla was sitting, their gazes level, and dull amber bore contemplatively into the elf’s bright, clever golds. It was a gaze not intense or threatening, but expectant, as if waiting for a sign of revulsion, for Nyla to flinch away, and the elf steeled her spine under the sheer, intimate weight of those eyes- she searched them for malice, but saw none.

With a flit of a smile tilting the corner of the dwarf’s lips, a single, blunt finger came to trace the curve of Nyla’s jaw, to skitter over the old scar along her cheekbone with the tenderness of a lover.

“When’d you get this?” the dwarf asked, her tone soft, genuine, and Nyla gave her head a barely-there nod of a no, a calculated lean into the gentle touch.

“Tell me your name first.” she responded, her cheek almost resting in the hollow of the dwarf’s soft palm.

“Tell me yours, first.”

“An impasse, then.” Nyla echoed the dwarf’s words, and noted with a lick of pride the wan grin tugging on the other woman’s lips, crow’s feet blooming in the corners of her thickly lined, narrow eyes, and the faded, tattooed lines on her cheeks twisted and stretched, as if come to life.

Sort of a Carta vallaslin, Nyla mused to herself absently, noting the irony of the bareness of her own cheeks.

“Thank you for keeping watch.” the dwarf said finally, and her hand, as if it was but a gentle request, curled under Nyla’s chin, tilting her head back slightly.

The kiss, while sudden, was not unexpected. As the dwarf leaned forward to slant her lips over Nyla’s, the elf allowed her eyes to flutter shut for barely a moment, and in that time, it was gone- barely a peck, and as they parted, their expressions fell back into place- gazes unreadable, thoughts, however thunderous, unknown to everyone but themselves.

“You better get dressed.” Nyla said and rose to her feet, effortless and elegant, effectively breaking the moment’s tension as the dwarf stepped back- for a second, she allowed herself to mourn the warm, if somewhat clammy touch on her cheek. “I’m heading towards Orlais.” she strung onto the end as casually as if it was but a remark on the weather- of course, most directions one may turn, chances are, they are going to run into some part of Orlais, but the invitation was clear enough regardless. Fighting the knot between her eyebrows, she placed the garment she held cradled in her lap into the dwarf’s waiting arms.

“What a coincidence.” the dwarf grinned, and shrugged the coat back onto her damp shoulders. “I’m heading towards Orlais as well. Perhaps we can each head towards Orlais on the same route, for a time.”

Nyla caught her satisfied smile before it would have slipped onto her face, and carefully tucked it into a hidden pocket of her heart.

“Let’s get moving.”

**Author's Note:**

> I have a [a tumblr](http://www.weresquirrel.tumblr.com) , in case anyone is interested! :) Prompts and feedback are always welcome! <3


End file.
